EXPEDITE ▇▇▇▇ VOLUME TWO
━━ ❛ 𝒔𝒐 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒚 ❜
chapter no. 052!
HE LIED TO HER.
God, of course, he did.
She was a fool to think that he would be any different than he had been before.
She was a fool during all of it. The attacks. The ambushes. The robberies. The intimate moments. All of it. From the very beginning to the very end.
Every inch of her body could feel itself progressively shutting down. Her glass heart fell to the floor, her last shred of darkness shattering into a million pieces. Like glittering rays of sunlight, they glistened back at her as she stared perilously at the moldy floorboards.
A misty haze clouded her mind as it spiraled in erratic directions, continuously bouncing off one name: Savitar.
The world faded into a blur, taking all the sounds, tastes, and smells with it. Everything. Everything had vanished.
A jumble of voices and emotions jostled in the depths of her chest, and it was taking all the energy she had remaining not to panic, but her attempts to stay calm were to no avail.
There was nothing but an inescapable silence suffocating the narrow corridor as she could feel her chest tightening. A painful lump rested in the back of her throat as the tears began to gradually form. Time seemed to slow down as her breathing became shallow, her lungs screaming for air.
Out of nowhere, a small but intense, sharp pain struck a nerve on the top of her head, and her knees buckled. She dropped to the floor and let out a scream of frustration and anger, tears boiling in her eyes as she gasped for air. The screams she released barely reached her ears as her back hit the wall. A stream of tears was tumbling down her cheeks as everything that followed next happened in a whirl of blurs.
Her mind was empty and unfocused.
The briefest moments escaped her mind; all she could see were the streaks of blood leaking from the knuckles on her hands. Gasping, she reached out for breaths of air that ceased to exist, the back of her throat burning like a wildfire.
The pain she was enduring must've come in waves; minutes of sobbing broken apart by pauses for breaths of air that scarcely touched her lungs before hurling her back into another set of cries. Turning, she leaned her head on the splintered wall, feeling an array of cobwebs getting tangled in her hair.
A persistent pounding pierced her skull, and she raised her trembling hands, pushing her hair away from her face, ignoring the fact that her red and black hair was now being mixed with blood.
It felt as if her mind was on fire. Burning to the ground and singeing at the dusting ends.
How could she have been so blind? So naive?
Before she had time to process what exactly it was she was doing, bolts of purple lightning were crackling off her in forked ends as her eyes transitioned back into their original state of warm, chocolatey-brown goodness. Floods of electricity coursed throughout her bloodstream, pumping nothing but pure adrenaline.
Her breath came out in stuttered rasps, cutting one another off, desperate for the taste of the cold, winter air. The muscles and veins in her neck and arms were straining themselves as she tried to cling to something physical. Anything that would bring her back to reality.
The air was thick with moisture and humidity, and it felt like the walls were closing in on her. The never-ending, penetrating darkness was more than overwhelming. It was suffocating every inch of her being as she sobbed silently. Her lungs no longer contain the capability to let out a single noise.
Heartache and torment wrestled back and forth in her chest.
She was suffering more than ever and deserved every aspect and ember of the firing pain. She'd brought this upon herself. She let herself believe in something too good to ever be true. She fell for the facade everyone warned her wasn't real.
All of this was her fault. Everything that was headed the multiverse's way was her fault. Barry Allen would be erased from all existence, and it would be her fault. If it hadn't been for her and the misplaced anger, love, hate, and dejection... This would never have happened.
If she hadn't been so damaged in the first place, she wouldn't have been so susceptible to the emotional manipulation and games Savitar had run her through. If only she hadn't given in to the allure and bewitching demeanor of the drug, none of this would have happened.
An agonizing scream fell from her blood-stained lips, and she held her head in her hands, pulling at her hair as a torturous plate of pain served her.
The purple lightning engulfing her glowed brighter as she gasped for air, the blood from her hands and the tears from her eyes mixing and dripping to the ground soundlessly. Crawling from her figure to the floor, the lightning lit a blazing fire on top of the splintered floorboards, spreading from where she sat, collapsed, to the end of the hall, progressively traveling up the walls.
The golden flames out-shined the evanescent, glowing purple roaring brightly, and it became even harder to breathe.
Snapping her eyes open, gasps of ragged breath could barely be heard as her eyes darted around the hallway frantically. Nothing but a sea of red, yellow, and orange lights clouded her vision, and she looked down at her hands.
She immediately jumped backward at the sight of her hands covered in a combination of purple lightning and orange fire. Her back hit the flaming wall behind her, and she heard another scream, hunching over. Embers of fire licked at the ends of her waist-long hair, burning the tips as she sobbed, her body slowly being devoured by flames.
If I don't get out of here, I'll die.
That thought alone motivated her to speed her way out of the mansion, ignoring the pounding in her head and the excruciating pain that pulled at every inch of her being.
A blinding white light clouded her vision as she blasted through the front doors that were barely hanging on by a thread to the doorframe. Groaning, she raised her arm and shielded her eyes from the light, and she tripped down the porch steps. Rolling across the cold grass and down the hill, she coughed violently, traces of smoke dancing about inside her chest.
"Piper." A voice called, and the black and red-haired woman stopped, looking up from where she lay sprawled out on the lawn.
Feet away stood a woman dressed in dark-washed skinny jeans and a fitted, white long sleeve shirt. Her strawberry-red hair fell across her shoulders delicately, and a row of freckles was sprinkled across her cheeks and nose, identical to the ones that Piper wore.
There was a tug at her heart, and a rush of relief trickled down her back as she stared at the woman across from her. The darkness around her dissolved, and her vision became clear. For the first time in weeks, she felt as if she could breathe again.
"G-Ginger?" Piper stuttered, pushing up from the ground. "How are you here?"
A sympathetic smile spread across Ginger's lips, "Piper..."
It was then that Piper noticed how when her sister smiled, the corners of her eyes didn't crinkle like they used to. "You're not Ginger, are you, Speed Force?" She whispered, an eerie sense of déjà-vu creeping over her shoulders.
"No, I'm not," Ginger spoke softly, "but nothing else was working. You wouldn't listen, and you need to."
Piper furrowed her brows, "Look, if this is about how badly I've screwed up; trust me, I know. All right? I know. Barry Allen will be erased from existence and—" Her words were cut off as everything around her faded away, and she found herself standing in the West household.
"I um, I'm going to make us some hot chocolate so you two can start decorating. Do you want any, Piper?" Iris asked.
Blinking, Piper glanced at the dining room where younger versions of herself and Barry stood. A small smile spread across her lips, and she took a step forward. All thoughts of what was happening were gone from her mind as all she could focus on was the faded memory from long ago.
"Yeah, thank you," the younger version of Piper answered softly, watching as Iris walked to the kitchen, rubbing away the tears that fell down her cheeks.
A blast of air hit the redhead, causing her shirt to lift slightly, and she looked over to the living room where Barry had already set up the tree, stockings, and lights. She chuckled, making her way into the living room, the sound of her heels clicking against the wooden floor. "You know that's technically cheating, right? Using your speed to hang up decorations quicker than doing it normally?"
Barry looked up, placing a Santa hat on his head. "It's not cheating if I'm having fun. That's the whole point of putting up Christmas decorations, isn't it? It's supposed to be fun."
Piper couldn't help but snort as she watched the younger version of herself narrow her eyes, shrugging in response. Barry walked over, another Santa hat in hand, and he stopped in front of her before placing it on her head, positioning it correctly. "There you go! You look beautiful," he smiled.
"You just added ten years to my lifespan by saying that," Piper blurted, her words not processing in her mind until it was too late to take them back. Both Piper and young Piper's cheeks burned bright red as he chuckled, shaking his head.
"Good. I'm glad I did because it's true." A genuine smile curled at both of their lips, causing the speedster to smile wider. Backing away, he reached into a box and held out an ornament. Piper grabbed it and made her way over to the tree, hanging it and turning back around to see Barry holding out another one.
Walking down the three steps that led into the living room, Piper made her way around the couch to get a closer look.
"I'm not going to be the only one hanging these up, gorgeous. You better get your ass over here and help," the young redhead stated, placing her hands on her hips. Rolling her eyes, Piper couldn't help but crack a smile as she watched Barry make his way over.
The soft sound of footsteps approaching caught the black and red-haired woman's attention, and she turned her head. "This was the beginning of when you really started to fall for him," Ginger spoke, nodding to the two speedsters. "It was small, but the way he looked at you, at this moment—" Piper looked over at the two to see that Barry was gazing at her with a gleam in his eye. That gleam lit up his entire face, and the corners of his lips twitched upward as he looked at her as if she was the only woman in the world. "—This was when he began to fall for you too."
A lump was caught in her throat as she watched, tears filling her eyes.
"Everyone's missed you, you know," Barry's words made Piper pause, "I've missed you." Hanging up the ornament in her hand, she briefly glanced at him. "You haven't been around that long, but the team felt off without you there. There was nobody to snap at me when I made a dumb decision or anyone commenting about how cute I was or how good it felt to have me inside them."
Bringing the palm of her hand to her forehead, both Piper's groaned in embarrassment.
Barry laughed softly, his cheeks tinted pink. "I could go on about how it felt for all of us when we didn't have you around because things were different. When Jay first arrived, Caitlin had someone she connected to; when he left, it affected the team and her. I didn't fully understand how that felt until you stopped showing. There wasn't someone else running beside me anymore. It was just me, and it sucked. I like having you by my side when we're out running and saving the city from meta-humans. You helped me feel less alone, and with you gone, I felt alone a lot.
"I know that what happened with Zoom broke you. What he did broke you. I know that all you've felt for the past month is guilt and self-hatred because of what happened. I know how you feel." Barry brought his hand up to her cheek, wiping away a tear that had escaped. "You aren't alone in what you feel. We're all here for you. I'm here for you. You already know that probably, considering how many times I came to your apartment and talked to you through the door."
Piper chuckled softly, nodding.
"What I'm trying to say is, I care about you and want to help in any way I can. I want to be here for you if you'll let me. Cisco told me what Zoom said to you... about you being next. And I want you to know that I won't ever let him touch you again. I'm never allowing him to hurt you again. You're safe with me. I promise." Barry said firmly, his eyes shining brightly as Piper's stomach churned.
Watching with blurry eyes, Piper turned away.
It felt as if the walls were closing in as Barry's words echoed in her mind, "You're safe with me."
He was right. She was always safe with him.
That was one thing that was true about Barry and not Savitar. He would always put her and her safety and happiness above his own when he didn't need to. He would always do whatever it took to keep her within arm's reach. The only reason she wasn't now was because of the decisions she'd made and been manipulated into making. Her mind had been warped into the exact making and model Savitar wanted it to be. She was his. The drug and misplaced feelings had made her his. Made Efficacy.
"I'm sorry," both Piper's whispered weakly, each for different reasons.
"It's okay. You're back and here now. That's all that matters." Barry murmured.
Before the black and red-haired woman could move or open her mouth, she was pushed backward by an invisible force. Groaning, she felt her body hit the ground. Pressing her hand to a wooden floor, she stood up only to see that she was inside the Hamilton building.
Dancing across the walls were three shadows. The first shadow sat at a desk while the other two came up from behind.
"I said put your hands up! This is CCPD! Freeze! Stop what you're doing!" Julian shouted, his gun aimed towards the first shadow. Out of breath from running after the blonde, a more recent version of Piper ran her hands through her hair, continuing after the latter, only a mere thirty feet behind. "I said put your hands up!"
The shadow sat eerily still, the darkness hugging around its backside due to the lack of light. A subtle glow from the scarce monitors surrounding it reflected a swamp green glare at the CSI.
Reaching his side, the redhead darted her eyes in-between the two, her mind oddly blank as to what to do.
Eyeing the frozen shadow, she narrowed her chocolate-brown eyes, taking in the size of the unknown figure. Whoever they were, they weren't tall, nor were they tiny. From what she could make of the silhouette, the outline of the person resembled one of a kid. Perhaps a teenager.
Before she could say a word to Julian about the suspect being a child, the shadow shot up from the chair, turning to run away, and the CSI fired his gun.
Piper crept forward from the opposite end of the room, watching as the other version of her froze. There was a flickering of colors going on in her eyes, and Piper held her breath, watching as the frozen woman blinked.
The change between chocolate and hollow brown came to a sudden halt, the two mixing and adding a brown resembling nature's color to her eyes. Bringing her hand to her mouth, the memory version of Piper backed away from Julian as she realized that Savitar had just gotten into her head, yet again.
"That right there," a voice spoke, and the black and red-haired woman spun around to see Miles walking toward her. "That was the exact moment when you blacked out."
Furrowing her brows, Piper tilted her head to the side. "Blacked out? What're you talking about?"
"You'd been experiencing blackouts, remember? You'd wake up and be missing large portions of time. Never knowing how you got somewhere or what you'd been doing." The MHTF Director elaborated, making brief eye contact with her before turning to watch the memory play out.
The bullet headed straight for the kid was snatched out of thin air, and he was yanked forward by Central City's finest.
"You're just a kid," the blonde uttered, his arms dropping as he put away his gun. The Flash turned around with the suspect in his hands; it was a dark brown-haired kid with an enraged expression across his face.
"Yeah, a kid you almost killed!" the boy shouted angrily, thrashing about in the speedster's arms as he brought him towards the CSI. "You're gonna pay for that one, buddy. You're gonna—"
"Yeah, I don't think so, man; I think you're the one that's gonna be paying for all the damage you did to this city... for a very long time," Flash commented, his voice echoing as he handed the kid over to Julian. The speedster glanced over to the redhead, frowning slightly as he noticed her avoiding his stare. Pushing aside the slight twinge in his chest, he walked around the three, ready to leave.
"Hey, Flash," the blonde called, turning his head. Barry froze and slowly turned around, his eyes darting, again, between Piper and Julian. "Thank you."
Nodding, the scarlet speedster gave him a forced smile. "You're welcome."
Turning to look at Miles, Piper frowned. "I don't get it. You said I blacked out, but I remember this perfectly," she pointed out, her brows scrunching together in confusion.
"This was the night that the drug, Vixianic, began taking over your system. Remember when your eyes were changing colors? That was because of the drug. At that moment, you, Piper Maeve Lita, were no longer in control of your thoughts or actions. Your mind had been poisoned and corrupted. Efficacy was given the reigns while your conscience, the good in you, was pushed to the farthest corner of your mind. You, Piper, blacked out. This may be clear in your mind, but that's because you're still looking at it through a dark window. Efficacy is in your head. In control. You need to wake up." Miles said sternly, the last two words echoing in the now-empty building.
Before she could respond, Piper felt a weighted force knock into her, throwing her back and into the air. A scream of terror left her lips as she found herself falling through a sea of black nothingness. Gusts of wind blew her hair forwards, cluttering her vision as she continued to free fall.
The screams and cries for help leaving her lips were sharp enough to pierce through someone's skin. Uncontrollable tears streamed down her cheeks as she continued to fall, tumbling further and further down.
The next scream that left her mouth tore through her vocal cords like shards of broken glass slicing the skin. "Miles!" Her words echoed before bouncing right back at her.
Suddenly, everything came to halt, and she felt her body hit the cold surface of water. Complete and utter darkness enveloped her.
The water closed in around her, suffocating every inch of her core and filling her up with a deep sense of horror.
She held her breath for as long as she could, longer than ever before, and her lungs were set ablaze. Red and white splotches danced in the water as her brain became fuzzy with the onset of asphyxia.
The coldness she had felt upon entering the water was completely gone, and a desperate, hot wave had come over her. Her heart was beating rapidly in a panic as her brain failed to formulate coherent thoughts. The urgency for air was more apparent than ever, and she gasped, gulping down mouthfuls of salty water.
Then, there weren't red blotches in her field of vision anymore. It was all black.
Her throat seared in agony with the rising pressure of the water.
Opening her mouth again, this time to scream, Piper let out a string of bubbles that disappeared into nothing but empty space. Despair filled her with every struggling gulp as she felt herself being sucked further down.
Burning hot water was thrust up her nostrils, and a stream cascaded into the back of her throat, sending jets of pain throughout her body. Slowly, the commotion and chaotic sound of the water moving about burned out into a low hum, buzzing at her ears, gradually muting into silence.
She gave up on the screaming, thrashing, and fighting, allowing the water to hold her body in a sustained position beneath the surface.
As her vision blurred and her consciousness faltered, her body became numb, and she waited resignedly for the cold hands of death to suck away every last piece of life left in her.
"You shouldn't have left!" A voice screamed, and Piper felt her body immediately shoot upwards. Her warm, chocolate-brown eyes raced around wildly as she panted heavily, unable to grasp onto anything for stability. Her chest was rising up and down in a rapid fashion, her breath coming out in raspy wheezes as she blinked away the burning tears. Placing her hand over her heart, Piper gasped for air.
Every inch of her body burned with an inescapable pain that spread from the top of her head to the tip of her toes. Groaning, she clenched her teeth together as she held back her screams of agony.
"Oh, quit crying."
At the sound of hearing her own voice, Piper looked up shakily, her eyes red and bloodshot as she met her gaze of herself.
The woman she gazed at was nearly an exact mirror reflection of her. A clone. She was dressed in a smooth, red, button-up trench coat that adorned her frame perfectly, with the hood of it covering her head. Her infamous long scarlet-red curly hair that suited her skin tone perfectly was brought to the left side of her head, black streaks running through it. She held a polished red bow tightly in her right hand while a sack of arrows rested on her back.
Efficacy.
"God, you're so pathetic. Get off the floor," she spat, rolling her eyes dramatically.
Pushing up from the ground, Piper stepped forward, her feet trudging through puddles of thick, red blood. Glancing down, she couldn't help but notice that she was dressed in her iconic purple suit, and the black streaks in her hair were gone. Reaching up to her face, her glove-covered fingertips brushed against the black, satin eyepiece.
Expedite.
"Look at you, all stressed over the bullshit the Speed Force keeps feeding to you. You can't trust it, Piper." Efficacy clicked her tongue, shaking her head as she walked closer. Piper gulped, looking the woman up and down in slight apprehension.
"Piper, get away from her," Ginger called, and the purple speedster turned around.
Efficacy rolled her eyes again, scoffing, "Well, well... speak of the devil, and it shall appear."
"Piper, we need you to wake up, all right? You need to wake up. You need to defeat Savitar. You know what he has planned and what he's planning on doing with the Matrix. You need to stop him. You need to save the multi-verse." Ginger insisted, reaching out and grabbing onto Piper's right hand.
"You need this, you need that... honestly, do you guys ever give a damn about what she wants?" Efficacy snapped, walking forward. "All of her pain. All of her suffering has been because of you! Because you would rather her be Expedite and do your bidding than her be happy and have everything that she deserves! Piper didn't choose this! You were the ones who decided to strike her with lightning! This was done to her!"
Turning her head, Piper's eyes remained wide as the jumble of the two voices invaded her mind.
Ginger's gaze didn't leave the redhead as she held her hand tighter. "You've answered our call before. It was a difficult choice then, and now you're faced with another. What's changed? Why can't you say yes? Why can't you wake up?" She asked, pulling her closer. Stumbling over her feet, Piper quickly caught herself before she lost complete balance.
"What's changed?! Are you kidding me? Everything's changed! She's changed! Everything and everyone around her has changed! And it's because of you and what you had her do last year! You destroyed her!" Efficacy shouted, grabbing onto the redhead's left hand and yanking her away.
Piper couldn't help but wince as she felt something pop in her lower back as the two tugged her back and forth.
Ginger placed it on Piper's cheek with her free hand, turning her head her way. "No person is immune to fear and doubt. You're not weak or unworthy just because you gave in to temptation and skepticism. That's what makes you human, Piper. But the courage and strength to move forward? To push yourself to keep protecting others? Even in the face of your worst fears and overwhelming trauma? That's what makes you a hero. That's what makes you Expedite," she breathed, her eyes tearing up as she gazed at the speedster endearingly.
"That's nice to hear, but it doesn't change what's happened. What she's done." Efficacy snapped, shoving Ginger's hand away and cupping Piper's cheek, forcing her head towards her. Gulping, the redhead stared into the scarlet archer's dark, hollow, brown eyes that were clouded with red flakes of anger.
"Don't blame yourself," the strawberry-redhead shook her head, tugging on Piper's hand.
Scoffing, Efficacy pulled Piper closer to her side, "Then who else is there, Ginger? Who?! I don't see anyone raising their hand and volunteering. This is all her fault. Not Savitar, not Athena, not Hunter. Her's. She did this. She helped him. She gave in to the darkness because it was the easiest way to get over her actions and who she'd become."
A singular tear fell down Piper's cheek, and she blinked rapidly, forcing the waterworks away.
"Piper, you still have a chance to fix this. Fix everything." Ginger insisted, disregarding the harsh glare she was being given.
"Fix this? You make it sound as if she needs to fix a broken toy. No! This can't be fixed! Barry Allen will be erased from existence because of her, and there's nothing she can do to save him! There is no more time for fixing!" Efficacy shouted, throwing her bow into the vast darkness that surrounded the three.
Blinking, Piper looked down at the puddle of blood that she stood in, feeling sick to her stomach as the two continued to shout.
"It wasn't your fault, Piper. You were under the influence of Vixianic, which made you more vulnerable to Savitar's false promises and threats. He manipulated and tortured you while you weren't you. This is not your fault." Ginger cried, placing her free hand on the redhead's shoulder.
Efficacy's mouth dropped, and she shook her head. "You wanna tell that to the eight guards she shot in the chest and killed? The families she kidnapped and helped Dr. Alchemy turn into meta-humans? The meta-humans she watched be murdered by Savitar when they refused to join his movement?"
At her words, Piper's head shot up. The rims of her eyes were bright red as a sea of tears tumbled over her eyepiece and down her face.
The scarlet archer was right.
All of this was her fault.
She'd given in to the seducing darkness and allowed herself to become a murderer. She was a monster.
"That wasn't you, okay, Piper? It wasn't. It was Efficacy." Ginger said earnestly, briefly glancing at the black and red-haired woman.
Turning her head, Piper shook her head. "What's the difference?"
"There is none." Efficacy answered automatically.
"The difference is that a bubble of light inside of you helps you keep moving forward. A bubble of hope. You are good, through and through. You always have been. Not a speedster alive even comes close to how good and brave you've been. You are the strongest, kindest, purest, and most selfless soul. You sacrifice pieces of yourself, small and large, every day. Nobody truly notices or appreciates it, but we do. We told you this months ago, but we'll reiterate it.
"While being a speedster, and even before that, you've suffered great losses. More than anyone should ever have to. You've held the bodies of loved ones and strangers, telling them everything will be okay, and you won't leave as they take their last breaths. You've saved Caruthers City and Central City more times than anyone can count. You've always done the right thing. The good thing. No matter how difficult it was to go through with. You, Piper Lita, were given all the power within the Speed Force, and now you have it back. You need to wake up and stop Savitar. The world needs Expedite. The world needs you." Ginger whispered, her honey copper eyes shining brightly as a wall of glassy tears rose higher.
The muscles at the bottom of Piper's chin trembled, and she bit down on her lip, squeezing her eyes shut tightly.
Efficacy rolled her eyes, giving the strawberry-redhead a killing glare. "What would you know about the pain she's endured? How many times does she have to suffer for you? When is it your turn to suffer?! Do you even feel pain?" The grip she had on Piper's hand tightened as she stepped forward. Nothing but complete anger and fury covered her facial features.
Ginger's face was the color of fresh snow as she stared, petrified, at the mirror reflection of the redhead. Tears welled up in her eyes as she hesitantly shook her head. "No. At least not as you know it."
"How could it?" Efficacy asked, looking back at Piper, noticing the speedster silently crying. "The Speed Force isn't human. It doesn't know what it means to be alive. To love. To watch your loved ones be ripped away before your eyes. It only pretends."
"That's not true. Piper, we care about you." Ginger said, stepping forward.
Looking in-between the two, the purple speedster let out a small whimper. She shook her head vigorously, averting her eyes back to the ground as she breathed in shakily. It felt as if every fiber of her being was being rocked back and forth as the two continued to argue, trying their best to convince her to join their side.
"No, you don't. Look at yourself. You've taken on the form of her sister, who was killed because of her connection to you just so you can manipulate her into doing what you want her to!"
"Piper, your mind and heart are being contorted and stained by the drug. By Savitar. You must fight it. These aren't your true feelings. This isn't who you are."
"What would you know about her and who she is? You only tune into the broadcast when the time calls for you to do so."
"You can't give in, Piper. You have to fight this."
"Fight what? The truth?"
"Only you can end this. You must choose."
"Choose what? To kill another evil speedster and lose herself again?"
"Don't listen to her lies. If you choose Efficacy, you will lose yourself forever. You will lose the best parts of you. You will lose the part of you that Barry fell in love with. The part of you that makes you good."
Breathing in deeply, Piper tried to hold in the screams of frustration. Her head was pounding, and it hurt to keep her eyes open.
Burning rage hissed through her veins like a deathly poison. Screeching and demanding a release in the form of unwanted violence. It was like a volcano erupting, fury washing off her in ferocious waves. She couldn't think without someone speaking, and she couldn't process everything that was happening properly.
"There is no good left!"
It felt as if patience was no longer a feeling she possessed when Efficacy shouted, and Piper's eyes snapped back open. "Stop it!" she screamed, her vocal cords burning as the two words left her mouth. Stomping her foot down, hard, into the puddle, she let out an ear-piercing wail. Waves of dark red blood rose from the ground and curled into the shape of snakes before shoving back both of the women violently.
They were both gone, and the snakes of blood fell, disassembling themselves.
Feeling her support system give out, Piper dropped to her knees and pressed her hands against the ground. Gasps of raspy air spilled from her lips as she felt herself becoming light-headed.
Instead of focusing on controlling her breathing, the woman was solely focused on the face of the man she was in love with.
Barry Allen.
He was what was keeping her from ending it all, right then and there. He was the light in her self-created darkness. He was the one she would always run home to. He was the only one who could bring her back from this. It was him, and she would always choose him.
Always.
𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄!
(some scenes and dialogue are inspired by/from episode seven of season six.)
what's up? how is everyone?
to clear some things up in case anyone is confused: ginger and miles were portraying the speed force while efficacy was portraying the drug, vixianic, and the darkest side of piper. this chapter was very similar to chapter 29 of act one where piper was taken to the speed force and asked to kill aureolin.
nothing was working, barry's letter didn't, and the speed force needed to step in and bring piper back. she's the only one capable of defeating savitar.
anyways! i loved writing this chapter so much. it's personally one of my favorites and it felt so good to finally begin writing the return of everyone's favorite speedster. this was very emotionally draining for me to write, but it was worth it.
QUESTION: what'd you guys think of the chapter?? let me know your thoughts!
i hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
thank you so much for reading!
please vote and comment!